High Diversity and Novel Enteric Viruses in Fecal Viromes of Healthy Wild and Captive Thai Cynomolgus Macaques (Macaca fascicularis).

Vorthon Sawaswong,Taratorn Kemthong,Sunchai Payungporn,Eda Altan,Xutao Deng,Elizabeth Fahsbender,Suchinda Malaivijitnond,Eric Delwart

doi:10.3390/v11100971

Vorthon Sawaswong, Taratorn Kemthong + Show 6 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/v11100971

Copy DOI

Abstract

Cynomolgus macaques are common across South East Asian countries including Thailand. The National Primate Research Center of Thailand, Chulalongkorn University (NPRCT-CU) captures wild-borne cynomolgus macaque for research use. Limited information is available on the enteric viruses and possible zoonotic infections into or from cynomolgus macaques. We characterized and compare the fecal virome of two populations; healthy wild-originated captive cynomolgus macaques (n = 43) reared in NPRCT-CU and healthy wild cynomolgus macaques (n = 35). Over 90% of recognized viral sequence reads amplified from feces were from bacterial viruses. Viruses from seven families of mammalian viruses were also detected (Parvoviridae, Anelloviridae, Picornaviridae, Adenoviridae, Papillomaviridae, Herpesviridae, and Caliciviridae). The genomes of a member of a new picornavirus genus we named Mafapivirus, a primate chapparvovirus, and a circular Rep-encoding single-strand (CRESS) DNA virus were also characterized. Higher abundance of CRESS DNA viruses of unknown tropism and invertebrate-tropic ambidensovirus were detected in wild versus captive macaques likely reflecting dietary differences. Short term rearing in captivity did not have a pronounced effect on the diversity of mammalian viruses of wild cynomolgus macaques. This study is the first report of the fecal virome of cynomolgus macaques, non-human primates frequently used in biomedical research and vaccination studies.

Highlights

The virome is the community of viruses found in a particular ecosystem [1]
The cynomolgus macaque (Macaca fascicularis) cohort (n = 78) was comprised of two colonies, wild macaques (Wild, n = 35) captured from natural habitat located in Wat Tham Praporthisat (PPT), Saraburi (GPS: 14◦ 34’N, 101◦ 08’E) and wild-originated captive macaques (Captive, n = 43) captured from Khaoson-Samae Dam (KS), Bangkok (GPS:14◦ 34’N, 101◦ 08’E) permitted by the Department of the National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation; permission no. 0909.302/5369 (25 Mar 2014) and
The characterization of fecal swab viromes from 78 cynomolgus macaques showed that bacterial virus reads contributed the largest fraction of recognizable viral reads

Summary

Introduction

The virome is the community of viruses found in a particular ecosystem [1]. Viromes characterized from animals and human are comprised of both prokaryotic and eukaryotic viruses [2]. Commensal bacteriophages, which make up the major fraction of the fecal virome, can modulate the microbial community in the host body and influence host immunity [2,3,4,5]. Typically a smaller fraction of the enteric virome, mammalian viruses may cause diseases such as diarrhea resulting in malnutrition and dehydration [6]. Deep sequencing of wild animal fecal viromes unveiled many eukaryotic viruses whose pathogenicity, if any, remain mostly unknown [7,8,9,10]. Emergences of human infectious diseases have been initiated by zoonotic viruses originating from bats, rodents, Viruses 2019, 11, 971; doi:10.3390/v11100971 www.mdpi.com/journal/viruses

Methods

Results

Conclusion